SCOTUS: Port Authority Won’t Pay for 9/11 Asbestos Cleanup

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear a case on the question of whether the Port Authority does should pay for the 9/11 cleanup costs of an apartment building located near Ground Zero. The decision comes after years of litigation and ended with the Supreme Court declining to hear an appeal on the issue.

The litigation began when the building developer, Cedar & Washington Associates, filed a lawsuit against the Port Authority in 2008. The suit was rooted in a law that deals with environmental and health risks connected to industrial pollution. Specifically, the plaintiff sought the cost of cleanup associated with the asbestos, fiberglass and other toxic particles that had to be removed from a 12-story building in lower Manhattan following the deadly attacks and subsequent collapse of the Twin Towers.

The suit has pressed on for six long years. This past May, a federal court of appeals ruled that the terrorist attacks of 9/11 were an act of war and, therefore, the Port authority was not liable under the pollution law. While the Supreme Court did not make a definitive decision on the question of liability, by refusing to hear the appeal, it allows the decision to stand.

The Port Authority was not the only defendant named in the suit. Other defendants included the two airlines whose planes were hijacked, United and American Airlines, as well as the World Trade Center leaser, Larry Silverstein.

Although it has been more than 13 years since the attacks of 9/11, many people are still suffering the effects. If you have a health problem or other issue you believe is connected with 9/11, contact the knowledgeable New York personal injury attorneys at Barasch, McGarry Salzman & Penson right away.